Chapter 10

“Then who was it?”

Without another word, Nathan stormed out of my room, coming back a few seconds later with his phone clenched in his enormous hand so hard, I thought it might break.

My body was visibly shaking, but he either didn't notice or didn't care, because he was talking on the phone, almost yelling. I didn't even try to pay attention to the words he was shouting into the phone.

The door swung open and a familiar gorgeous body sauntered in.

“What on earth are you two doing in here? I can't sleep with all this racket,” Hyene sleepily droned, complaining and obviously wanting us to shut-up so she could get back to bed.

Nathan pulled his phone away from his face for only a second.

“I think the Keepers found us. Well, Claire, somehow,” without a second wasted, he yanked the phone back down to his mouth and kept talking.

Hyene's jaw dropped and eyes widened.

Well, niw she was awake.

She sped towards Nathan so quickly it made me queasy, but then again I just blamed my shocked state for making things up.

Or maybe that was another Werewolf ability?

“You speaking to Stephan? What does he think?”

Nathan put his back to her and kept talking into the phone.

She dismissed his rude attitude and turned to me.

“Elana, why don't you go take a shower and get cleaned up, we will take care of this.”

I nodded numbly and sulked to the shower, Hyene following me to make sure I made it there, as if I would trip and accidentally kill myself on the way there.

Actually, that was a possibility.

I stepped into the bathroom and Hyene waited outside as I closed the door, offering her a small, reassuring smile. She returned the same smile as I closed the door all the way and locked it.

Sitting on the counter by the sink was a pair of sweats and a simple blue T-shirt. I reached to the side and turned the shower knob, waiting for the water to get hot before I stripped down and stepped into the lukewarm water.

The pleasant drops hit my back in a hypnotizing matter, massaging my tense muscles. I found some shampoo and conditioner on the shelf and squeezed each one in my hand.

Nathan.

I wasn’t obsessing, the hair moisturizer had Nathan's smell all over it. A watermelon scent filled the bathroom as I squeezed just a little into my hand.

I quickly forced my brain to stop thinking of him and finish up quickly.

Sure, he seemed perfect... besides his bi-polar attitude... but did that really qualify him enough for me to think about him this much?

I finished up quickly, needing a distraction from the perfect man that I've discovered earlier today. Or yesterday? What time was it?

Everything in this house was expensive and the definition of perfection—including the towels. The soft plush cloth wrapped my body like clouds, that alone almost making me fall asleep standing. I regretfully dropped it and slipped on the clothes, curious as to what was happening now.

When I stepped back into the hallway, the lights were bursting through the dark like a knife—sharp and direct. A single set of flip flops and a light jacket lay right outside the bathroom, and I quickly slipped them on.

The flip-flops were a little big on me and the jacket was a bit too small, but it did the job. A buzzing noise was coming from downstairs, filling the halls with noise. Some voices were muffled, some just speaking, others yelling.

Taking a step towards the stairs to find out what was wrong, I started making out familiar voices. Hyene, Stephan, and even Nathan. Yet, there were still others that were unfamiliar to me.

My foot hit the tile on the foyer lightly and I slowly made my way to where the noise was coming from.

At first I thought it was coming from the family room behind the foyer, but then I realized it was coming from the kitchen. Making my steps light again, I scampered into the kitchen.

Everybody from yesterday, and a few more individuals, were gathered around the table, some siting, and some standing.

The only people not there from yesterday were Claire and Trysten.

A beautiful short woman with midnight straight hair and a slim figure brought mugs and passed them around the table. When each placement had a mug, she started pouring some hot, dark liquid into the mugs which I instantly assumed was coffee.

Hyene turned around to see me then elbowed Nathan, who was standing next to her, speaking at the moment.

He followed her line of sight until it rested upon me, then stopped speaking all together. After his silence, everybody else stopped and it fell dead silent.

I awkwardly rocked on the balls of my feet and ringed my hands in front of me.

Did I interrupt something? Should I turn around and go back upstairs?

Sensing my uncomfortable feelings, the lady pouring the beverage put the pot down.

“Hello, Dear. How are you this morning?” She got closer and closer with every word until she was right in front of me.

I thought I heard a growl from the distance, but I just shook it off as being so on edge.

“Umm, I'm fine. What's going on?”

By now, all eyes were on me, even Stephan's.

“Oh, nothing. Just a little bit of planning. Come, dear, take a seat.”

That wasn't a suggestion, that was an order.

She lightly grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the table, sitting me two from the head, Nathan and Hyene standing on either side of me.

Nathan stared at my hand in the Woman's and his posture tightened. When she let go, his shoulders relaxed a little. He quickly grabbed the chair next to mine and sat.

Stephan was at the head of the table, and most people on the other side I recognized from outside the school.

Now that I was seated, everyone else grabbed a chair, but not before a couple of them exchanged a look. Hyene pulled out a chair and sat on my left.

Across from me, there was the man with dark skin and another man with red hair on his right. The beautiful woman pouring drinks continued her work then took a spot at the end of the table.

“Elana, how are you feeling this morning?” The man at the head of the table questioned.

Not sure if it was genuine concern or not, I mumbled, “Fine. Thanks.”

Reaching to my own mug, I took a sip and was surprise when chocolate melted into my mouth.

“So I suppose you have questions. Well, we're here to answer them. Shoot away.”

Everyone seemed to lean in closer to see what I was going to say.

“Well, um, what can you guys do, what do you guys do, what's happening to my best friend... should I continue?” I tried to sound polite, but it came out a little bitter.

Stephan stared at me at first, then glanced at Nathan and took a deep breath.

“Well, we are Shape Shifters. You guys probably know us as Werewolves, but we prefer the term Shape Shifters. That's because there are certain packs that can change into different animal. We can shift anytime, but it is especially easiest when the moon is fullest.”

“So, although you're not a werewolf, the moon does affect you?”

Stephan nods. “To some degree. The urban legend came up a while ago, but they never knew we can transform into other animals. We're not as much as effected by the moon as much as you think, but the fuller the moon, the more powerful our abilities become.”

“Abilities?”

Another nod. “Well, as wolves we can see, run, smell, and hunt better, especially when the moon is full, but we also have other abilities.”

“What kind of ability?”

“Anything, really. It depends on your origin. Hundreds of years ago, there was a powerful witch that was hunted by vampires. In order to protect herself, she befriended a wolf pack and gave the wolves different abilities. Some had elements, tracking specialties, body manipulating, etc. However, after she was killed, the pack separated and the abilities scattered. Now, your abilities depend on which bloodline you came from. Since then a lot of the bloodlines have been mixed, so there is no way of telling what a specific ability will be unless you know your genealogy. Usually there will only be one ability for each Shifter.”

“What do you do with these abilities?”

“We do what we need to. The animal side of us requires some things while the human side of us require other things. Some of the animal needs are hunting, fighting, and tracking.”

“So why did you take Claire and I?”

“We have reason to believe that Claire is a Shape Shifter, and we came to train her.”

My mouth felt like cotton balls.

“Umm, sorry to disappoint you, but I think there is some mistake. There is no way Claire is a—,” the word kept getting stuck in my throat, but I forced myself to say it, “Shape Shifter.”

“Claire was adopted, correct?”

“Yeah...” How did he know?

“Well, her biological parents were Shape Shifters, but thought they were unfit to have a child, so they put her up for adoption.”

“They put a Werewolf up for adoption?”

My question sounded sarcastic, but it was genuine.

Stephan let a low growl out, and Nathan growled back next to me.

“Shape Shifters, and yes. You see, Claire's biological mother had the ability of healing. She thought they were able to take out the gene, but all it did was delay the process and make her ability stronger. We didn't find her until recently when one of my pack members was in the area and sniffed out her sent.”

“So, she spontaneously set the school on fire just as you guys happened to show up?”

Stephan frowned, obviously still not too keen with my continuous sarcasm.

“Something like that. When we approached her, everything was too hard to take in and her emotions let loose the fire from within her.”

“How did you guys change my dream?”

Stephan twisted his head to the side slightly in confusion. Stephan looked around, but everyone was just as confused as he was.

“What do you mean?”

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.

“Nothing,” I opted for instead. “Where is Claire now and why can't I see her?”

“Claire is undergoing her first transformation at the next full moon, and she needs to be kept away from you because she can hurt you.”

“Claire would never—”

Stephan raised his hand and cut me off.

“While in the first stage, a wolf loses almost all human memories, except the smell of the ones they love. They pick up their scent, so they will go after them first. That is also their strongest transformation, so we don't know if we can stop her. Especially because her Shifter gene is coming out later in her life. Most wolves get their first transformation around age eight, but Claire's circumstances are different.”

I marveled at this phenomenon, trying to grasp it.

“Then why did you bring me here?”

“We were going to bring you to a friend's in New Mexico,” he pointingly looked at Nathan, but Nathan held his strong posture. “But our plans were changed and we brought you to our main home. Claire is not too far away, but far enough that she should now be able to change and not pick up your scent.”

I nodded and looked at my hands, trying to figure out all of this new information.

“Of course, we do have a Mind Manipulator with us, and our first plan was use him. But, of course, that couldn't work on you, so the next plan was to take you somewhere safe.”

“What? Why wouldn't it work on me?”

Nathan grumbled something under his breath that caught everyone's attention, but then Stephan dismissed him and spoke up. “Because you're a Foreseer.” Stephan spoke it as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

That word rang a bell. They called me that yesterday.

“What is that?”

The attention went from Nathan to me in less than a second, eyes as wide as an owl's. Is it not normal to know what that is?

“They never told you?”

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